Well, until I get some more time and experiments with the 'diorama behind the viewport' solution, I am making small boxes of approximately the right size and the boolean cutting them to fit, taking the outside faces so they don't interfere with the hull... They all look a bit bare but kind of real... most are linked and mirrored, I'll unlink some of them so I can turn the lights off... :-D
So, here's the upper part of the hull, including the CO's and XO's quarters in deck 4, on the starboard and port side gunwales, respectively, and the nice Upper Forward Observation Lounge in deck 3. There's a weird artifact with the glass material I am using, though, which makes it ugly to use from afar (it's okay when you are very close, though).
So I switched to a different material (that I call "fake viewports") which are completely transparent. They have some sheen, some reflectivity, but I cannot honestly say I see much of that, I'll have to work on materials and this kind of effects. In any case, there are no distorsions or weird reflections (or any reflection at all, apparently!) and you can see some more details and even some walls! :-)
Same image without suns. You can appreciate the rooms a bit better and the see-through blue light on deck 6, because I haven't yet gotten to that part... :-) It makes for an interesting self-illumination view, though...
Well, I got an idea for the rest of the bigger viewports, let's see if it works!
Finally someone describes this correctly. When you look at photos of the international space station in light from our sun and reflection from earth, it is really lit up. Bright. But in deep space, all you would see are the light from the windows and any running lights or engine light. But yes, in sci-fi, we want to see our beloved ships so some ambient light is added. Actually it isn't too bad because ships go into warp and then arrive at a planet that lights them up.
Finally someone describes this correctly. When you look at photos of the international space station in light from our sun and reflection from earth, it is really lit up. Bright. But in deep space, all you would see are the light from the windows and any running lights or engine light. But yes, in sci-fi, we want to see our beloved ships so some ambient light is added. Actually it isn't too bad because ships go into warp and then arrive at a planet that lights them up.
Yup! Another thing to be aware of is distances: oin screen, ships are always ridiculously close to each other, sometimes less than 200m, which for 500+m length ships is very close. A more realistic distance would be several kilometers. I'd say 10km is very close, ideally 100 or more would be safer. But there¡s no way they fit on a screen and be visible! That's why running lights are so important: they make it easier to detect you and calculate the orbit/flight path against the dark sky or against the planetary background.
One of the reasons I've moved to self-illuminating registry numbers and names: more light to be seen and it's way more efficient that pointing a lamp to the hull... ^_^
Still working on the interiors of the ship, but some details were begging attention... :-)
I changed the sensor plating material, and redid the main deflector because I wasn't satisfied with the checker pattern. Let me know if you like this one more... :-)
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So, here's the upper part of the hull, including the CO's and XO's quarters in deck 4, on the starboard and port side gunwales, respectively, and the nice Upper Forward Observation Lounge in deck 3. There's a weird artifact with the glass material I am using, though, which makes it ugly to use from afar (it's okay when you are very close, though).
So I switched to a different material (that I call "fake viewports") which are completely transparent. They have some sheen, some reflectivity, but I cannot honestly say I see much of that, I'll have to work on materials and this kind of effects. In any case, there are no distorsions or weird reflections (or any reflection at all, apparently!) and you can see some more details and even some walls! :-)
Same image without suns. You can appreciate the rooms a bit better and the see-through blue light on deck 6, because I haven't yet gotten to that part... :-) It makes for an interesting self-illumination view, though...
Well, I got an idea for the rest of the bigger viewports, let's see if it works!
Cheers!
Yup! Another thing to be aware of is distances: oin screen, ships are always ridiculously close to each other, sometimes less than 200m, which for 500+m length ships is very close. A more realistic distance would be several kilometers. I'd say 10km is very close, ideally 100 or more would be safer. But there¡s no way they fit on a screen and be visible! That's why running lights are so important: they make it easier to detect you and calculate the orbit/flight path against the dark sky or against the planetary background.
One of the reasons I've moved to self-illuminating registry numbers and names: more light to be seen and it's way more efficient that pointing a lamp to the hull... ^_^
I changed the sensor plating material, and redid the main deflector because I wasn't satisfied with the checker pattern. Let me know if you like this one more... :-)
Cheers!